Dividing a reference frequency is a useful and accurate way to derive a desired output frequency. When the divisor is an integral power of two, the use of a binary counter provides a simple and accurate circuit for dividing the reference frequency. If the divisor is some other integer, slightly more complicated binary counters employing feedback can be used.
When a frequency is not directly obtainable by dividing a reference frequency by an integer, the output frequency is usually derived by some combination of mixers, dividers, multipliers, and phase lock oscillators. These systems are often quite complex and expensive to implement.
The invention described herein utilizes the accuracy of digital counters and devices to produce an output frequency derived from a reference frequency by dividing the latter by a non-integer value.